How Education is Being Changed by Technology

This Guest post is by Christine Kane from internet service providers, she is a graduate of Communication and Journalism. She enjoys writing about a wide-variety of subjects for different blogs. She can be reached via email at: Christi.Kane00 @ gmail.com.

When you think of a school setting what comes to mind? If you went to school anytime during the 1990’s or earlier you likely think of sitting in a classroom with your textbooks, pencils, notebooks, and backpacks. However if you’re a child of the 2000 era then your view of a traditional school setting is probably a little bit different. Technology has seeped into more and more aspects of the traditional school setting and slowly changed them to fit the emerging trends.

1.      From Libraries to the Internet

Before we had access to anything and everything at the touch of our fingers people did actually do research in books at libraries. However now that finding something is as easy as typing the topic into a search engine, it makes poring through books looking for the perfect morsels of information seem tedious and outdated.

2.      Online courses versus classroom setting

When online courses initially began being offered it was seen as a cop out, something that wasn’t nearly as challenging as a traditional class setting. However online education has taken the world by storm and now it’s become more the norm than the exception. It even helps cut back on spending for traditional schools, making it a win-win for everyone.

3.      Tablets taking over textbooks

Anyone who went to school before laptops and tablets took hold can attest to hauling around heavy backpacks laden with colossal textbooks. However more and more schools are adopting the practice of issuing each student their own laptop or tablet on secure networks so that they can submit homework and do research online.

4.      Lectures bring in YouTube

With the implementation of things like YouTube it has become easier than ever to make lectures more exciting by supplementing them with different short video clips. This is especially true for subjects like history because teachers can bring up all kinds of videos, such as old presidential campaigns or clips from movies. Being able to break up the monotony of lecturing helps keeps students more focused and engaged, and enables them to get more out of the whole learning experience.

5.      Shift in students

Before computers, tablets, and smartphones became the norm students came to classes ready to learn how to use computers, type, etc. However now children are exposed at a younger age to technology and many come into schools already being quite proficient with computers in every form. Students are becoming better at multi-tasking earlier on because of this constant exposure to computers, the internet, social media, and even video games.

Technology has been changing education steadily over the years, but recently has taken an even stronger hold in how the school systems work. We can only expect technology to continue to strengthen its footholds in education as it continues to grow. 

The Adventures of Annie and Her Boys: Phillip Island

Years ago, 1967-68 to be exact, I was a Fulbright Exchange Teacher in Australia. It was a wonderful year of making new friends and taking in the sights of the land down under. This year I was contacted by Annie Tunheim from Denver Colorado. Her husband is an art teacher and she shared with me they would spend a year in Australia. Chris will be teaching in small town just south of Sydney. Annie begins blogging about the year in Aussie land a few months before they departed. She is a marvelous writer and I know you will enjoy reading her blog The Adventure of Annie and Her Boys.

The Adventures of Annie and Her Boys: Phillip Island: We left Wilsons Prom, my heart full of wombats, and drove over to Phillip Island. On the way there, we stopped and saw the pelican feeding ...

The Technological Influence on Population Growth Trends

After my last post 7 Billion: How Did We Get So Big So Fast?, I heard from Elaine Hirsch. She has been working on a paper about technological influences on population growth. Voila, a guest post from Elaine Hirsch elainehi86@gmail.com. Elaine gives us an academic look at technology and population growth.

The greatest single factor in the history of human population growth has been developments in technology and the associated social changes arising from it. From the first development of tools to the development of agriculture and the later rise of industry, technology has expanded the resources available for the support of large populations. A commonly-topic covered in PHD programs in economics or sociology, many academics have been looking at how the current technological landscape will affect population growth. However, the current era demonstrates how technology can also provide social influences that can reduce the rate of population growth.

The first important fact to consider is that technological growth helps drive population which itself helps drive technological progress. This is due to the ability of technological improvements to increase the agricultural productivity of both individuals and societies, and thus allowed for a boom in available resources which provided sustenance for a larger population. Furthermore, efficiencies in agriculture allowed people to pursue other trades in academics and philosophy which helped set the foundation for many more innovations to come.

The first major era of population growth came with the rise of tool making. These were extremely simple tools, allowing the use of fire, sharpened weapons and the use of wood as a tool material. The earliest shaped stone axes may have been developed over 1.8 million years ago, by Homo Erectus. Spears made it easier to fend and hunt wild animals, while fire provided light, heat, and more importantly, the ability to cook and preserve food. This allowed early groups to support larger populations, albeit still nomadic ones.

The development of agriculture and the subsequent rise of sedentary populations resulted in the next surge of population growth. With the development of urbanization, agriculture allowed for the rise of specialized classes, such as scribes and metalworkers that earlier societies were not able to support. This allowed for increased population growth and reduced the average death rate. With the rise of larger urban and semi urban populations, the birth rate increased in addition to an increased average lifespan.

The rise of industry, such as mass production and mass transit systems was embodied by the invention of the train and railroad. These transformations vastly increased the reach of urbanization, the value of specialization, and the freedom to support non-agricultural workers. It was in this period that the greatest increase in human population growth occurred. In more advanced nations, the trend had also been shifting towards urbanized, as opposed to rural and pastoral populations.

The long-term trend as we transition from the industrial age to the information age today has manifested a reversal of traditional trends of increasing population growth. In nations such as Japan and Germany, non-immigration related population growth is actually entering negative territory. Thus, technological and social change is now having a retarding effect on population growth, especially in the developed world.

The rise and fall of population growth rates is inextricably tied with technological developments. As they drive both the economy and society, transformations in technology will continue to have a central impact on population growth. The challenge for the future will be to accommodate for an increasing (albeit at a slower rate) population but more importantly devising a way to take care of an overall aging global population.

7 Billion: How Did We Get So Big So Fast?

I first saw the 7 Billion video as a post from Phil Wagner on google+. Do you have concerns about the population on our planet? Most of us do. This video will give you a picture of where population growth is taking place. It was just over two centuries ago that the global population was 1 billion - in 1804. I think you will find this youtube video very interesting.

Teaching with Technology: Innovative Instruction or Wasting Time?

Here is another technology guest post. This one comes from Elaine Hirsch – elainehi86@gmail.com .

When you think about the term "educational technology," you probably think about computer labs and digital presentations. You probably don't think of simple things like pens and overhead projectors, and you may not think about tablet computers and social media. However, all of these things are educational technologies. This range of examples illustrates that educational technology is a changing field that will continue to alter both what and how students learn. However, whether in elementary school or PHD online, only when used in conjunction with appropriate teaching methods can educational technology really make education more effective.

Educational Technology Then and Now

While "educational technology" may be a rather new term, teachers have always used technology, and that technology has always affected what and how students learn. Before mass-produced writing tools were widely available, students learned the techniques involved with writing using quill and ink. Next, they learned to use pens and pencils when writing by hand. Since the advent and spread of the typewriter, we have had typing classes. Film projectors, overheads, computers, iPads, and calculators are also all examples of educational technology. As new technologies are created, what educational technology is in particular will continue to change.

However, today's use of classroom technology is significantly different from educational technology in the past in one key way: today's educational technology is more social than ever before, and indeed this is proving to be a point of controversy. When teachers integrate technologies like Facebook, blogs, YouTube and text messaging into their classrooms, parents and administrators wonder how instructors could be using these technologies to do any real teaching. Aren't teachers just allowing kids to waist time?

Administrators and parents often go to great lengths to ensure "time-wasting" sites like Facebook are blocked within school networks and make sure cell phones stay off during the school day. Restrictions like these are much to the chagrin of teachers who insist students are actually learning using these technologies.

Resolving the Controversy

The solution to this controversy, surprisingly, comes from looking not at what technologies teachers use but at how they use them. If technology is used appropriately, it can greatly enhance learning. In fact, the learning needed to succeed in the 21st century working world isn't possible without educational technology. If students don't learn how to use computers and even social networking sites effectively, they won't be able to communicate with coworkers and bosses or do research when they enter the real world.

Further, with so many of today's students being exposed to technology at home long before they come to school, learning via technologies such as video games, blogs, and online activities can help students better understand concepts and become more engaged in what they learn. In fact, Facebook can be successfully integrated into the classroom in a number of ways that would engage at-risk students as well as better facilitate most other students' learning as well.

However, teachers also cannot teach effectively when they use technology for technology's own sake. Instead, they must harness the power of technology to present information in a useful and education-centered way. Allowing students to text, play on Facebook, or blog during class is obviously pretty pointless unless students are doing it in conjunction with a lesson. For example, English teachers could have students compose text messages as part of a grammar lesson, showing students how texting grammar works in the context of a text message but not an academic paper. Lessons like this can be hugely effective. Simply turning a blind eye while students text their friends is not.

Whether they are using computer labs or Facebook, teachers need to embrace educational technology to be effective, but they must embrace it in the context of good pedagogy. Technology without substance is just as ineffective a teaching tool as substance without technology is to this digitally native generation.

Let’s hear from you. Innovative Instruction or Wasting Time?

The Great American Teach-Off

GOOD is hosting the Great American Teach-Off.
Ten inspiring teachers are competing for one $10,000 CLASSROOM GRANT and it's up to you to decide who will win! From October 3 through October 30, we'll upload a new video every Monday at 9AM (PST) from the finalists. Come back here each week to watch teachers responding to questions about education, then vote for your favorite educator to advance.
http://www.good.is/great-american-teach-off-voting

Yes, I do have a favorite but the most importantly we need your vote.

My favorite:
Pernille Ripp
Grade 5 at West Middleton Elementary School, Middleton, WI
Pernille Ripp is a fifth grade teacher in Middleton, Wisconsin. Passionate about having students find their voice, she gets to have the best job in the world. She blogs fervently about education at www.mrspripp.blogspot.com.

Help Pernille win $10,000 for her school and classroom! Vote today and each day until Oct. 30, 2011

"The world we have created is a product of our thinking. It cannot be changed without changing our thinking."
-Albert Einstein
"If a child can’t learn the way we teach, maybe we should teach the way they learn."
-Ignacio ‘Nacho’ Estrada

This is RELATIONSHIP BUILDING

My last post was on relationships trumping data. I was not saying to forget data because it is a tool that successful teachers learn how and when to use. I was saying that relationships are more important to student learning than data. I now have a wonderful example of what I was trying to convey. Mrs. Ripp is one dynamic fifth grade teacher in Madison Wis. She knows that to maximizing student learning she must connect with her students and build personal relationships. Look at the activity she has for her students on the first day of school. Do you think these kids will be jumping out of bed on day two just to see what will be happening at school? Wouldn’t you love to be in this classroom? What relationship building activities have or did you plan for the first week of school? Wishing all teachers and students an exciting, engaging year of learning!